Xavier is 1-up in Tiong Lian Junior finals
February 19th, 2008by Henry Liao ‘72, YEHEY! Contributors
19 February 2008, 9:08 AM
Xavier School scored a come-from-behind 85-83 win over defending champion Chiang Kai Shek Monday night (Feb.18) to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three Juniors Division finals of the 32nd Metro Manila Tiong Lian Basketball Association tournament at the Uno gym.
Xavier overcame an 18-point deficit (49-31) midway through the second quarter to register the two-point victory that brought Chiang Kai Shek’s 16-game winning streak over two seasons (nine in 2007 and seven this year) to an abrupt halt.
High-scoring Jeric Teng, the tournament’s scoring leader, had hogged the headlines in recent games but it was Gabriel Banal who played the hero’s role for Xavier this time.
Xavier scored the series opener’s first four points on baskets by Jeric Teng and Miguel Tan but Chiang Kai Shek retaliated with an 8-0 run to take control. CKSC was ahead 19-10 when the Golden Stallions tallied eight straight markers to come close at 19-18. It was23-20 after the first 10-minute quarter
CKSC established an intimidating 49-31 advantage (on five straight markers by guard Karl Villaflor) and appeared ready to finish off the opposition. However, Xavier stayed afloat by knocking in seven straight points to slice the deficit to 49-38 at halftime.
Chiang Kai Shek’s lead was sliced to seven, 70-63, at third quarter’s end after lanky Tomas Santos knocked in a trifecta at the buzzer.
The Blue Dragons were still ahead by nine points,78-69, with six minutes left, when Xavier engineered a stunning endgame rally that eventually reversed its fortunes.
Frontliners Gabriel Banal (four) and Jeric Teng(three) combined for seven consecutive points and the Stallions trailed by just two, 78-76, with three minutes remaining. CKSC was up by four, 80-76, after Steven Chua struck from under.
Hardworking Miguel Tan connected on a jumper to prune the deficit back to two, 80-78, before back-to-back fielders by Banal gave Xavier an 82-80 lead – its first since the opening minutes - at the 1:20 mark.
Playing with an injured right hand that was the result of an auto mishap days earlier, the 6-3 Banal subsequently lost grip of the leather at 0:57 and this gave CKSC an opportunity to deadlock the score or even go ahead.
Man-mountain Justin Chua capitalized on the opportunity, completing a three-point play that moved the Blue Dragons back on the driver’s seat, 83-82,time down to 0:45.
However, Banal was not yet done with his endgame heroics. His undergoal stab at the 0:29.7 mark gave Xavier back the lead, 84-83. Following a Robin Tan steal, CKSC surrendered a pair of fouls, the last of which coming with 10.5 ticks left that sent Banal to the free-throw line.
Xavier was up by two, 85-83, after Banal converted his second of two freebies. CKSC still had a chance at victory but an open Arnold Shih opted not to attempt a potential game-winning trey and instead issued a quick pass to Justin Chua, who hurriedly hoisted a trifecta from the right corner that bounced off the rim and sealed CKSC’s doom.
Showing grace under pressure (author Ernest Hemmingway’s description of “courage”), Banal scored11 of Xavier’s final 16 markers, including the last seven.
Banal, who shot 9-of-19 from the field and was 3-of-4from the foul line, poured in 18 of his team-high 22points in the second half. He also hauled down 16rebounds.
Teng, on the other hand, collected 21 points (on 8-of-21 FG and 4-of-11 FT shooting) and 12 boards. He was limited to just eight markers in the second half, however.
Two other Xaverians scored in double figures – Miguel Tan, 18 (including a dozen in the first half), and Tomas, 12.
Justin Chua led Chiang Kai Shek with 23 points (on an11-of-20 FG clip), 22 rebounds and two blocks. John Capati and John Laohoo contributed 12 and 10 markers, respectively, while Steven Chua and Karl Villaflor each had nine for the losers.
Xavier goes for the jugular on Wednesday Feb. 20 (6:00p.m.), seeking to complete a 2-0 sweep of this year’s Juniors Division finals and regain the crown it last won in 2006.
Should CKSC take Game 2, a winner-take-all would be played on Friday Feb. 22 (6:00 p.m.), also at the Uno gym.
